Truly, Madly, Deeply

Truly, Madly, Deeply got its first television showing on 1 March 1992. The film was written and directed by Anthony Minghella, starring Juliet Stevenson and Alan Rickman. Minghella wrote the part of Nina for Stevenson. Rickman was very happy to play a role which was different from the cinema villains that had made him famous. The film – made by BBC Films – had already been a success in the cinema and won Evening Standard awards for Stevenson, Rickman and Minghella.

The Radio Times made light of the plot; "Nina is a young woman unable to cope with the death of her lover Jamie. One day she misses him so much that he comes back!" Truly, Madly, Deeply has romance at its heart and many comic moments, but is much more than a romantic comedy. The film features a harrowing depiction of grief – in intensely moving scenes with Stevenson. A fine supporting cast include Bill Paterson, David Ryall and Michael Maloney - who plays potential new boyfriend Mark.

Stevenson has said that Nina in Truly, Madly, Deeply is her favourite role. Her range can be seen in contrasting BBC dramas The Village and Atlantis. Minghella went on to win an Oscar with The English Patient. He returned to the BBC with The No 1 Ladies Detective Agency, shortly before his death in 2008. Rickman died in 2016, but his varied career included a return to the BBC in 2010 for The Song of Lunch.